Whole Apricot Herb

Hi Jennifer, i,m curious about it Can you tell me a bit more, thanks

I,ve heard of that. Actually apple seeds contain a "poison", can,t remember the name of it right now which our bodies require within a healthy limit.



But Jennifer here refers to a herbal remedy

many poisons come from herbal and vegetable sources.... many stronger than snake venom.

Apple seeds don't contain arsenic -- what's poisonous in apple seeds is the same compound as in apricot pits.

Apple seeds, peach pits, apricot pits, cherry pits and bitter almonds (not regular almonds) all contain amygdalin, "a cyanide and sugar compound that degrades into hydrogen cyanide (HCN) when metabolized."

[These fruit and nut trees are all closely related -- they're all in the same plant family, Rosaceae (yes, like roses, which are also in that family!).  Apples are in the genus Malus.  Peach, apricot, plum, cherry, almond and bitter almond are all in the same genus, Prunus.]

The body can handle the small amounts of cyanide ingested in a few apple seeds or a stray cherry pit or two.  The larger the dose (as in peach or apricot pits, or bitter almonds), the more likely a person will have some symptoms, like headache, dizziness, confusion, anxiety.

The laetrile from Mexico was made directly from crushed apricot kernels; the laetrile manufactured in the U.S. several decades ago was a synthetic molecule based on amygdalin.  The name "Vitamin B17" was given to laetrile by the people promoting it -- but this is generally considered a marketing ploy, as this is not a vitamin.

A study of 178 cancer patients who took amygdalin/laetrile (reported in The New England Journal of Medicine in 1982) concluded that: "No substantive benefit was observed in terms of cure, improvement, or stabilization of cancer, improvement of symptoms related to cancer, or extension of life span. The hazards of amygdalin therapy were evidenced in several patients by symptoms of cyanide toxicity or by blood cyanide levels approaching the lethal range. Patients exposed to this agent should be instructed about the danger of cyanide poisoning, and their blood cyanide levels should be carefully monitored."
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM198201283060403

Arsenic found in apple juice

http://www.slashfood.com/2010/03/19/apple-juice-contains-high-levels-arsenic/

"Arsenic and lead residues, left over from efforts to control codling moth in the 1930's through about 1948, have been blamed for much of the tree growth restriction on old orchard sites. In many cases, arsenic in a replanted site is an excuse for poor growth, rather than a true cause. These residues can slow tree root growth, adding to the problem if other factors are not addressed properly, but trees can tolerate much higher levels than were once considered toxic"

http://county.wsu.edu/chelan-douglas/agriculture/treefruit/Pages/Soil_Characteristics_and_Quality.aspx 

Luan, interesting (and scary!!!) links about arsenic and lead residues!  Yikes!